musical use for crape myrtle wood?

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antichef

antichef

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Thanks to hurricane Ike, I've got some crape myrtle wood on my hands (haven't yet chopped it into manageable pieces) - the trees that went over were around 35 feet high, and the trunks are 4 or 5 inches in diameter. The wood seems unusually rigid and strong to me (maybe why they got uprooted instead of going with the flow).

Anyway, I know some of us have a lot of experience with wood -- any thoughts before these go out for the pickup service?
 
Any wood to be used for any musical purpose (instrument building for instance) needs to be properly cured before it can be used. Unfortunately Crape Myrtle tends to crack and split a lot as it drys. I had several come down in an ice storm a few years ago, thought about using it for furnature, it split so badly it ended up in the fireplace. Burned fast and made a lot of ash and soot.
 
Seal the ends of the logs as soon as you can to reduce the checking. A product called Anchor Seal is what I use, but many people use cheap exterior latex paint for this. Wood loses its moisture from the end grain much faster than along its length. the resulting uneven shrinkage is the major cause of checking.

I don't know much about the mechanical properties of crape myrtle lumber but I suspect that the trunks are too small in diameter to provide good structural material for instruments. These trees are not noted for the straightness of their trunks. I would not be surprized to find that the lumber, even properly cured, was too unstable for instrument making. I'll make it a point to look it up when I have time. You've got me curious.
 
Far too small a diametre to be on interest to luthiers. As to other instruments I have no idea and haven't seen it offered as a tonewood. Myrtle yes crape myrtle no.
 
OK - thanks, guys! Given everything else that's going on, I believe these trees will go the way of the rest of the debris.
 
Crape Myrtle (Lagerstroemia indica) is not related to the Myrtle sold as tonewood. It is occasionally used for small ornamental projects especially in turnery. From what I've read it is very difficult to dry large pieces without checking. The wood is not distinctive in appearance so it wouldn't be a great candidate for something like binding or trim pieces. You might could get some kerfing pieces perhaps. It is hard, reasonably flexible, and takes well to glue joints.

Wish I had better news.
 
Milnoque said:
Crape Myrtle (Lagerstroemia indica) is not related to the Myrtle sold as tonewood. It is occasionally used for small ornamental projects especially in turnery. From what I've read it is very difficult to dry large pieces without checking. The wood is not distinctive in appearance so it wouldn't be a great candidate for something like binding or trim pieces. You might could get some kerfing pieces perhaps. It is hard, reasonably flexible, and takes well to glue joints.

Wish I had better news.
Click to expand...

A lot of work for kerfing or linings when the usual suspects such mahogany or spruce are so cheap and easily available.

You best bet might be to offer it to a wood turner who might be able to use it. I have a few guys that often drop in to go through my scrap bins. At the end of the year I usually get a bottle of scotch out of it.:D
 
cool -- step one is for me to get the chain back on my chain saw (fell off after I went wild on a felled mulberry tree), then if I can manage to cut up a couple of nice pieces, I'll just stash'em in the garage.

Actually, step one is for me to get back to Houston :D - after I did some initial clearing and battoning-down-of-hatches, we evacuated to get away from the water/power outage.
 
Got some downed trees around here. None good for luthiery. I almost got stuck in H town when ye old hurricane hit. Glad I did not take that flight othwerwise still be there in the dark. Not to say I am not always inthe dark one way or another.
 
I went ahead and came back solo night before last (I'll go back for the wife & kids when the power comes on - got power/internet at work, where I am now). I seized up my chainsaw cutting through those trees. My assessment of the diameter of the trunks was a little off -- more like 8 to 9 inches at the base. I'm saving bits of it when I can, but now I have to turn the project over to the pros, since my saw stopped working.
 
Could be nice to turn some of it on a lathe. 8 or 9 inches could get you a series of nice small bowls.
 
OK - I keep understating the size of the poor tree - here's a pic, with a standard sized hammer for scale reference:

deadcrapemyrtle1.jpg
 
What you have to remeber is that to get clean straight timber from it you need a good length as well as the width. Often also it is just the heartwood that is usable. I'm not sure if this is the case with crape myrtle. That is still pretty small to get anything other than a few turning blanks from it whatever.

You best bet would be to get on to a decent wood turner who would be able to give you better advice than we can here.
 
Just curious, but why is it called "crape myrtle" - if it's the tree I'm thinking of, with bright pink / purple / red flower bracts in the summer, then it's "crepe myrtle" over here - which I guess doesn't really make sense either, but at least I know what a "crepe" is - the french pancaky thang - but a "crape"?

Or is that what a "crepe" is in the US of A?

Beautiful tree... one of my favourites... sad to hear it's bit the dust...
 
Both spellings are used frequently here in the US. It seems like the difference was regional. In either case it is a common name and there is no controlling authority to decide which is correct. My vote is with your spelling but who am I to say.
 
Just as a side note and I think I've said this before. Whenever you are talking about or trying to identify a specific timber it is always best to use the latin or botanical name. The same timber can often go by two misleading names or two seperate timbers by the same name in different parts of the world. Sycamore and maple are often confused over here being given the term maple after we ship out sycamore to Europe for milling. Poplar is another example. There are also many others.

Myrtle is a case in point.

Myrtle

Crape Myrtle

Tasmanian Myrtle most common in luthiery

All completely different. There are others!
 
You can add Oregon Myrtle (umbelularia Californica) to the list. It has found considerable favo(u)r as a tonewood on this side of the drink.
 
Milnoque said:
You can add Oregon Myrtle (umbelularia Californica) to the list. It has found considerable favo(u)r as a tonewood on this side of the drink.
Click to expand...

It's called American or California Laural over here. Its not a true Myrtle either. See what I mean;)
 
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